The Legend of the Pink Dolphin
Rosita, as young girl of 16, who lived by the banks of the river, carried water every morning from the shore to the family hut. One day, after placing the water bucket under the roof of palm fronds, she stood beside a tributary of the Amazon and watched the haumas plants float by and the water grasses wave in the current.
Lulled by the peaceful scenery and privacy of the field, she undressed, removing her thin blouse and skirt and plunged into the water for a refreshing bath. The blades of grass beneath her feet and the water rushing around her waist were so distracting; she did not notice another pair of eyes watching her from the shore.
She shivered, suddenly overcome by the strange feeling of another presence. A young man, smiling and staring unashamedly at her unclothed body, stood on the muddy bank. She paled when she saw he did not avert his eyes but watched her as if they had met before. Impulsively, controlled as if by a sinister outside force, she rose from the water. Her footsteps were slow, measured and pulled her towards the man whose allure she could not escape and whose spell caused her to fall into his arms.
Rosita asked him, “Who are you? Where are you from?”
He answered, “I am a fisherman from Iquitos,” never averting his eyes from hers. I want to see you always. What is your reply, my love?”
“Yes,” she answered. “I will wait for you beside the stream at dusk.
From that moment on they met almost every evening, under the emerging stars and the secrecy of darkness.
He arrived punctually, paddling his canoe which settled low in the water, weighted with bundles of fresh fish. These he offered to his lover. After so many encounters, whispers, kisses, caresses and more, she became pregnant.
When he saw her swollen abdomen, her father became furious and beat her with a cane shouting “Who? Where did you meet him?”
Though she was a humble and timid peasant, she answered courageously, with the strength of a women in love. “The fisherman loves me and I love him. He will come tonight and ask for my hand.”
The young man, who had appeared nearly every night, came to ask her father for permission to marry. Reluctantly, her father agreed.
The days marched on and on one of those many mornings the young man remained asleep in Rosita’s bed. She woke, lighting to lantern to wake him as he usually left before the sun rose. But she froze when she saw what was in her bed and screamed to her father “There’s a pink dolphin in my bed.”
Her father rushed into the room rifle in hand, to help his daughter, while the dolphin tried desperately to escape. He killed it with one well-placed bullet. After that day the young man was never seen again.
Later, after several months Rosita died giving birth to a baby dolphin. Her husband was the “Buffo Colorado,” the pink dolphin who transforming himself into a man, seduced her.
Careful, if a charming and seductive young man in a village by the river introduces himself to you, do not let yourself be fooled by his appearance. He could be the “Bufeo Colorado” who wants only to steal the heart and soul of an innocent woman.
This is translated from the story as told by Norma Panduro Navarro and Luis Lopez Vinatea.